


Never Let Me Go

by swdsnygeek



Category: Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (2016)
Genre: Angst and Hurt/Comfort, F/M, RebelCaptain Secret Valentine
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-14
Updated: 2018-02-14
Packaged: 2019-03-18 15:36:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,559
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13684620
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/swdsnygeek/pseuds/swdsnygeek
Summary: A seemingly routine mission ends in imperial custody, some surprises and a couple of realizations. Jyn and Cassian have always known they are stronger together than apart.





	Never Let Me Go

**Author's Note:**

  * For [skitzofreak](https://archiveofourown.org/users/skitzofreak/gifts).



> A secret valentine fic for Skitzofreak who requested "Jyn and Cassian present a united front". I hope that comes across. A huge thanks to Sleepykalena for her awesome beta-work and general tolerance for my flailing. Also RapidashPatronus. 
> 
> Title from the Florence and the Machine song. It seemed fitting.

By the time Jyn and Cassian had arrived on the imperial occupied moon the situation on the ground had changed. The local leaders had lost faith in the Alliance and were uncertain of fighting Imperial rule. Some of them even seemed to eye Cassian as if he were a piece of meat at a market stall, for sale. Probably planning to trade him to the Empire as an act of good faith, proof of their loyalty. As if Jyn would ever let that happen. She lingered in the shadows, at the back of the meeting hall, watching for suspicious behaviors, comm link conversations, or any moves toward weapons. Cassian was representing the Alliance well, promising aid and support all the while keeping a steady read on the room; she could see that some of the leaders were starting to believe again. She herself knew how convincing he could be. There was something off about one of the locals. He was an aide to someone more important. That part of the mission briefing had been a touch dull. He kept tapping his chrono. Then, he seemed to decide that was obvious and started fiddling with his ear. Jyn would bet good Correlian rum he had a commlink in there. Suddenly he grew very still and then started moving for the door. She intercepted him; he didn’t even see her coming. 

“Going somewhere?” she questioned wryly, knocking him out with one swing of her truncheon.  
The local leaders looked back in shock, stammered apologies and assurances that they had no idea one of their own had intended to betray the Alliance. Sure, they were concerned about the viability of the cause, but they would never knowingly endanger it. Meeting Cassian’s eye, Jyn realized he had been suspecting this. Cassian and Jyn did them the courtesy of pretending to believe that was true and he went on as if there was no interruption. Jyn continued to monitor the room, looking for additional signs of betrayal. Only she caught the nod of acknowledgment he sent her way.. 

The meeting finished with no further interruption and it seemed that the leaders were once again invested in the cause. As they walked back to their lodgings, Cassian seemed on edge. Jyn took his cue and turned all her senses on high alert. She glanced at him, eyebrows raised, silently asking him what the problem was. 

“I’m not sure that man was the end of their attempts at betraying the Alliance. Many of these districts are very poor and the people are suffering. The Empire likely made very pretty promises of prosperity and abundance in return for turning over Alliance agents. The man at the meeting may have been a ploy to lull us into a false sense of security,” he explained.

Cassian wasn’t usually so verbose when on an op; either he was very worried, or he was trying to create the illusion that they were unaware of the potential danger. Both, actually, Jyn decided. The scheduled extraction wasn’t until morning and that still left them with 10 hours to avoid any hostile forces. As part of the negotiations, they were staying in the regional governor’s palace. The opulence of the building in comparison to the abject poverty Jyn had seen on the way into the city made her skin crawl. They were currently taking a stroll in the gardens. It was Cassian’s attempt at keeping them in their assigned quarters for as little as possible. It was harder to grab a moving target. 

She had just opened her mouth to ask him about his plan when it happened. 

The blaster fire in the darkness was near-blinding, and constant. With so many flashes it was difficult to identify the origin. Jyn moved toward Cassian, turning so they were back to back, and drew her truncheon and blaster. She could feel Cassian doing the same. It was no good, however- for every trooper they heard fall it seemed that another appeared. The battle illuminated in flashes of red. They were clearly surrounded. 

“Weapons down and put your hands up rebel scum!“ came the mechanical order. Jyn glanced at Cassian, ready to follow his lead. He grudgingly knelt, weapons in front of him. Making eye contact he mouthed, “escape attempt in transit.” Jyn nodded and followed suit. The troopers cuffed them both and led them towards the governor’s mansion. The regional governor himself and the man who attempted to leave at the meeting, now wearing an imperial officer’s uniform and sporting a black eye, greeted them. Cassian had been right. The empire’s pretty promises had swayed some of the leaders. She was sure that they were willing to pay handsomely for them.  
“Your assistance is greatly appreciated governor, we shall handle it from here,” the officer intoned and he signaled the troopers to move them out.  
They were loaded onto a transport, with bags placed over their heads. It was difficult to identify what direction they were heading in. Jyn hoped they were moving towards the warehouse district and not the spaceport.  
If the Empire took them off planet, escape became much harder. Plus, the rebellion would have no idea where to start looking for them.  
She heard shuffling around her and then a hiss from Cassian followed shortly by a limp thud. Kriff, drugged! She thought along with the sinking feeling that this particular officer was far too competent to be stationed on such a backwater world. That was her last thought for a while, as she felt a needle prick and then blackness.

Jyn woke up in an Imperial cell. She had no idea how much time had passed or where they were. The only good thing was that Cassian was still with her. Better chance to escape if they stayed together. It’s hard enough to get yourself out of a cell, not to mention having to find someone else and get them out too. Hopefully the empire had not yet identified them as being on Scarif- nor ID’d Cassian from any of this other successful missions. The longer they could remain nameless the better. If they ran facial recognition on Cassian they would go from low priority and security prisoners to very high. He had done enough deep cover imperial ops that they would find multiple matches for him in their records. 

She glanced at Cassian, trying to assess his condition and whether or not he was awake. The gaze that met hers was steady and alert. “I figured you would wake soon,” he said softly, “there has been a lot of movement in the corridor; we should expect visitors shortly. I think they are planning a long stay for us, since they bothered to change our clothes.” 

Jyn nodded and braced herself, heart somewhere down by her toes. They had taken their clothes, which meant they knew they were spies. 

She didn’t have to wait long. 

Once they came the first time, it seemed like they never stopped coming. Taking both her and Cassian, torturing one partner in front of the other, trying to force one of them to talk. The drugs and the techniques became increasingly brutal. Jyn wasn’t sure how long they had been there anymore. 

"Go, you can escape if you just leave me here. "

"Cassian, I know we are not really having this discussion again."

"Technically we've never had this discussion," he gritted out, "it is traditionally you telling me to leave. "

"Mmm, and does that ever work? You know the deal- together or not at all. Now put that clever mind of yours to better use. "

Jyn was worried, though she would never admit it. Whatever drugs the Empire had used during Cassian's last session had been particularly brutal. He was disoriented for hours after coming back. If they couldn't mount an organized escape this time, she had to make sure they took her instead. Which meant distracting the spy. Perhaps she could give him an assignment that would benefit them in the long run. She glanced around the dank room for inspiration. 

Not much. There were footsteps in the corridor, echoing on the durasteel. 

Time was running out for this round. 

They had both adamantly insisted that they were responsible for the sabotage operation. Kept the Imperial interrogators running back and forth between them. 

Now they were taking them in separate turns. 

It was worse. 

No concept of what was happening to your partner and no way to pass the time but worry. 

Footsteps, bingo.

"Cassian, I need you to get a count of the guards. How many and how often they patrol. Who else is out there when the interrogators come to fetch us."

He gave her a long, searching glance. He was on to her, of course. "You could do the same, let me go, then one of us is in better shape to mount the escape and disable the guards."

He had a point, she was forced to admit. If she came back in the same condition he did, their escape would be further delayed. It wouldn't be long before the rebellion gave up on them.

"Fine, but I don't have to like it. "

"I would expect nothing else," he replied with affection.

The cell door opened, Cassian volunteered and the troopers dragged him away. Meanwhile she observed and plotted. She would get them out of this, together.

 

Trying to ease the ache in her chest, she focused on the assignment she had tried to give Cassian. 

She counted trooper bootsteps, counted the minutes between rounds and listened for other noises outside of the cell- commlink crackles, engine thrusters, the sound of new captives being brought aboard, anything. 

As far as she and Cassian could tell they were on a prison transport ship. None of the crew had let slip the final destination. 

Perhaps there wasn’t one. 

As soon as you landed and initiated a transfer, there was the possibility of escape. Trapped in space and constantly moving made it harder for any outside allies to locate prisoners and very difficult to escape independently. 

Each time they left their cell, they observed what they could about the vessel. 

All the crew they saw was the same. Either the vessel wasn’t large, or a limited amount of personnel was allowed to have prisoner contact. Jyn was personally hoping for the former. 

The other containment cells on board seemed mostly empty. 

It made sense, as the interrogators seemed to be spending a lot of time with Jyn and Cassian. 

She had counted 4 patrols now, so 2 hours had passed. How long until they brought him back? 

Jyn took a brief break from her assessment of the ship to run an inventory on herself. The Imperials had taken their clothes and stashed them who-knows-where along with all of their weapons. Likely, the Imps had wanted to make sure their prisoners survived long enough to be questioned. A good instinct, she admitted grudgingly, as they each carried a lullaby pill in their jackets somewhere. She wasn’t too badly injured. In the usual misogynistic way, the Imps seemed to save most of their more brutal tactics for Cassian; neurotoxins, pain amplifiers, beatings, and (when the lieutenant was particularly upset) the vibroblade. Jyn’s truly caustic sarcasm and general defiance hadn’t garnered her much attention. Apparently they thought she was just some flunky who was partnered with the spy because she was sleeping with him. Maybe they thought seeing her “lover” in agony would cause her to break in an attempt to save him. All it was really doing was pissing her off. 

It was blatantly stupid, but may ultimately pay off. The longer they underestimated her the more she learned about them and the better health she was in for an escape. 

2 more patrols occurred while she was fuming. Still no Cassian.

Her annoyance slowly warped into fear.

She was starting to imagine that she could hear Cassian’s screams. It wasn’t possible- the cell was too far from the interrogation room- but Jyn couldn’t stop imagining it. The thought of losing him was starting to cripple her. She had survived so long on her own, and she could do it again, but she just didn’t want to. Not anymore. She couldn’t lose her home again and be the same person. Had she ever cared this much about someone? No, she admitted to herself. She never let anyone get this close before and when she was feeling especially honest she could admit to herself that she wanted to be closer still. 

She would find a way to save them both. 

She had to. Nothing less was acceptable. Not anymore. 

4 more patrols had come and gone before she heard the bootsteps and the odd, uneven thud of someone being dragged. 

Finally Cassian returned. 

Oh Force, it was even worse than the previous time. His pupils were blown wide open, only a thin line of brown iris visible and his fingers were bloody where the interrogator had ripped off his fingernails. 

“Cassian?” She questioned gently.

“Jyn,” he replied, and the relief and wonder in his tone broke her heart. 

She threw her arms around him in a fierce hug and muttered reassurances of “I’m here, I’m with you, all the way”. He shook in her hold but seemed to take some comfort from it. 

“The drugs, they keep bringing back things I am…not proud of. They…make it hard to tell the past from the present,” he explained weakly.

Jyn’s rage at the Empire reached a seemingly new height. How dare they hurt him like this. She and Cassian had been working as a team to help him overcome this and they were ruining it all. 

Cassian felt her tense and said, “No, no don’t worry, Jyn. They won’t undo all our work.” His tone lightened considerably as he continued. “I think I heard something that can help us. Or at least change something.” 

Jyn encouraged him to continue wordlessly. 

“The interrogators have found a questionable match for me in their systems. It sounds like they are having a commander I worked under come in person to confirm or deny my identity before they present their big find to Imperial Intelligence.“

Jyn wasn’t sure how this was supposed to be helpful and informed Cassian as such. 

The session had clearly been brutal, as his voice was growing rougher and rougher as he explained, “Commander Adama, when I knew her, was not a staunch Imperial loyalist. She had doubts about the system she served, doubts that could be manipulated to serve the interests of the Alliance. We may be able to convince her to assist us. Even if we can’t, her arrival means an interruption of normal routines. This ship is small, it is not meant for long-term captives. The crew is small too. We can take advantage of those things.”

“I appreciate your determination Cassian, but are you sure you are up for that?”

“I’m up for whatever has to be done.” His firm tone indicated the matter was settled. 

 

It was three more standard days before Commander Adama arrived on board the transport. In that time, the interrogators took Jyn for two sessions and Cassian once. The previous pattern continued.

Jyn was in much better shape than Cassian as they seemed to take her in more for show than anything else. Maybe they thought isolating him would break him. For all the pain they had inflicted, Jyn knew he had told them nothing. Their mutterings were growing increasingly annoyed. She was fiercely proud of his dedication to the cause, and to her, but also terribly worried. She wasn’t sure how much more he could take. If he was wrong about Adama, they could both die. 

Commander Adama had arrived. The idiot officers in the corridor were shouting about it and running up and down. Clearly her visit was causing a stir. 

Within an hour of arrival, the cell door opened and the commander herself entered, surrounded by her personal guards. She was tall with caf-colored skin and black curly hair tucked under her uniform cap. 

She glanced around, eyes lingering on the currently-unconscious Cassian for a long moment before settling on Jyn. “Bring her to the room. I suspect Lieutenant Garrow has not been dividing his attentions between prisoners as he should.” 

Jyn seethed in her seat as she saw the lieutenant hadn’t even bothered to have the room cleaned. Cassian’s blood was still visible on the binders hanging from the ceiling.

This had to end. 

She watched Adama as she moved about the room, inspecting the metal instruments, and deactivating the cameras. Adama then settled into the seat across from her. 

“We are going to help each other, I think,” the Imperial stated. 

Interesting opening, Jyn thought. She simply raised an eyebrow in response. 

“Our interests may be more clearly aligned than you think, but it is up to you to convince me. Your companion does look somewhat familiar, but he may just have one of those faces; you know the type. You could be withholding information, or we could all be on the same side.”

Jyn realized what the commander was doing. She was presenting possibilities, and searching for confirmation from Jyn. Cassian had gotten an accurate read on the other woman. Now it was up to Jyn to sell the cause. 

“Yes, we might be able to help each other; this could still end in an alliance,” Jyn hedged. 

Adama’s previously tight expression opened a little. 

“We could all get out of an unpleasant situation,” Jyn continued.

“Yes, I think so.” The commander slid a portable slicer unit and a stim shot across the table to Jyn, then stood and opened the door.

“Guards, escort the prisoner back to her cell,” Adama ordered. “I cannot be seen directly aiding you. You must get yourselves out. Do not forget what I have done for you,” she hissed before storming out of the room. 

She turned to the closest guard. “Perhaps a little more time without food and water will shake loose some of the cobwebs in her mind.”

“Do you want us to bring her companion, ma’am?” 

“No. The lieutenant has been lavishing too much attention on that one. It’ll be awhile before he is fit for conversation again. I shall head up to the bridge to discuss the lieutenant’s faulty techniques immediately.” 

Jyn’s mind was reeling as they put the binders back on and led her to the cell. Hidden in her sleeve was the key to their freedom. They had marched her down here via a different route. She now knew where the armory was and a computer console. Cassian might have a cover ID with active credentials. That would allow them into the armory and give them the ability to shut off any triggered alarms. With weapons and Adama providing distraction, they could overpower the small crew and commandeer the ship. 

“Cassian, Cassian, wake up,” she nudged. 

He stirred. “I’m awake, what did she want?”

“You were right,” Jyn whispered and then showed him what Adama had given her. 

His gaze turned calculating as he formed a plan. “Okay, here’s what we’ll do: give me that stim, slice the door, then we need to find a console and I can shut off the alarms and add our biometrics to the system. We can get weapons, then trigger a false alarm in the life support system to create panic. When everyone runs to address the issue we can pick them off. Adama will kill her guards and the lieutenant when she sees the life support failure. “ 

At Jyn’s puzzled look he elaborated. “When I was undercover as her aide, we ended up in a very similar situation. She will recognize the signs. Then we can contact the Alliance, tell them we are coming in with a stolen ship and a high level imperial defector.” 

Jyn nodded and said, “I’m with you. All the way. “ 

“It’s time. Let’s do this.”

She immediately put the plan into motion. 

For the first time during this op, their plan went off without a hitch. They took control of the vessel and were able to contact the Alliance on a secure channel. General Draven was most surprised to hear about their newest ally. Such a high level defector was rare. He pretended not to be impressed at their escape. They received a return path that was a mix of expediency and efficiency and returned to base within 2 standard days. 

Jyn nearly killed Cassian when the 21-B droid revealed the extent of the damage done to his back. As is was, it had taken long enough to heal after Scarif. Though truly she was angry that he had hidden it from her. They were a team. 

“Oh don’t worry, I’ll make sure he does all of his exercises and takes it easy, “ Jyn promised the droid in a perfectly sweet tone. 

Cassian swallowed the terror in his gut as he met her gaze. She led them back to their shared quarters without a word, then helped him strip out of his clothes and settle into the bunk. She curled around him and whispered “I’m so glad we made it back safely, together. “ 

“Welcome home, Jyn. “ Cassian replied, before kissing her softly. 

She wasn’t the only one who wanted more.


End file.
